Kind note from one of my readers 🤓

Writing can seem like a one way mirror, at times, or speaking in the wilderness. So, it rewarding when the reader looks/talks back & shares their experience of a book with its author.

Of course, it’s exciting to receive book reviews from professional critics in respected publications.

But, it’s especially heartening to hear from readers, directly, like this sweet note I received, below, regarding what a book of mine has meant to an anonymous reader, over the years 🤗

“Your book Where Epics Fail was given to me by a dear friend as a present because I had given her a different poetry book a few weeks before.

It really spoke to me and I underlined many of your aphorisms and wrote them on little sticky notes all over my room and even did some paintings of them (esp I love the one I attached about 'just be yourself').

Because I liked it so much, I gave it to my sister for a few months and she really loved it, too (her favourite one is: “Attention: a tension.”) and underlined many more before giving it back to me.

So, now for many of the underlined parts I'm not sure if it was her or me who underlined it, but I think that's beautiful in itself 🙂

It has already survived about 3 international moves and continues to give me joy!

Some of the other ones that often come floating through my mind are: “A poem arrives like a hand in the dark”, “What we look for in a good book, painting, music, or conversation? A stretch of runway to take off and return to ourselves and We have art as a consolation for not having wings.”

Never underestimate the power of reaching out & telling a writer the impact their work has had on you. Do not assume that they already know. Writing is, often, a lonely task with many deprivations & it is such meaningful human contact, heart-to-heart that makes it worthwhile 🤗

It’s like telling someone you love them — we all need to hear it.